“When you give physical space to human beings, they act differently. If you give them a small piece of paper and say, ‘Come up with a big idea,’ do you really think they’re going to come up with a big idea?” – Richard Banfield, Founder & CEO – Fresh Tilled Soil

BovControl CEO Danilo Leao and Marketing Director Hannah Raudsepp with GCAi President John Garvey during their recent Ideation Session.

We rarely do what the doctor ordered. That is the problem with the prescriptive approach; it goes against human nature – our habits and the freedom to choose for ourselves. Applying this approach to business – simply handing down an expert strategy to a paying client – frequently runs into the same problem. Both parties might agree on the objectives, but implementation rarely goes according to plan. So what is an agency to do?

As a digital marketing agency, we are not only framed as the outsider, but one that also speaks in indiscernible language involving platforms, audiences, anchor text, and that Valhalla-like click-through. In short, it isn’t easy for us to talk about digital because it is so natural for us to slip into the warm comfort of jargon and, on our best days, those who we talk to scarcely get what we’re saying. Since we have been a digital agency for much of our adult lives – building a dot-com bank and other cool web strategies before Google was invented – we have struggled with strategy planning for years. We know that there is a beautiful world out there in the digital universe, filled with the right audiences and real results, but how can we open the door to those possibilities and create strategies that will actually be implemented by our clients?

Enter Ideation – a planning method that accelerates innovation, ensures collaboration and shared vision, examines the relationships among thought, action, and result, and yields tactics that get implemented and evaluated (take a closer look here). It creates a marketplace where data and strategy meet. That marketplace determines which tactics are chosen, not solely because they serve certain objectives but also because they are most likely to be implemented and evaluated.

How you can get started on ideation:

1. Take down all your cool prints, paintings, and pictures.

2. Find a skilled contractor and paint all your walls with IdeaPaint  or something similar.

3. Oh, yeah – think about strategy and learn planning for about two decades.

Number three is really the difference. See, I have been thinking about strategy for years, earned a master’s degree in organizational development, read The Fifth Discipline over and over, became an Open Space Technology conference facilitator, and then iterated and iterated that experience year after year. Nothing I have ever done comes close to what can be accomplished through an Ideation Session.

The Ideation Session is based on the premise that big ideas do not come on small pieces of paper. Instead of mapping out a strategy on 8.5-x-11-inch pages, GCAi Ideation Sessions rapidly explode concrete objectives, relevant data, and tactical strategies in a visually impressive way and over a 140-square-foot canvas. Ideation Sessions accelerate creativity and innovation. They also result in a practical marketing plan that has been created through collaboration.

Lawrence Grumer, CEO and co-founder of Energy Harvesters, LLC, a 2015 MassChallenge finalist, described his perception of the GCAi Ideation Session he recently participated in [VIDEO]. “It helped us understand the innovation, the strategy, and the direction we need to go in order to convey a meaningful media strategy,” he said.

In our experience, the tactical strategies employed after an Ideation Session are more likely to be implemented, have a higher degree of success, and are more cost-effective than traditional approaches. We have now conducted Ideation Sessions for a wide variety of organizations, including those in the financial services, precision manufacturing, higher education, and health care industries. It is working, and the part we like best (other than that it is working) is that Ideation Sessions match our values – it is a visual, physical process that is actually exciting to be a part of. We have not done one yet that did not end with all of us standing back and examining the comprehensiveness of our work and saying “whoa” – before we take a pano, of course.

–  John Garvey, President

In 2013, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg showed up at Evan Spiegel’s front door with $3 billion stuffed in a suitcase and offered it up to the 24 year old in exchange for his disappearing messaging application, Snapchat. Spiegel famously told Zuckerberg to take a hike. Or at least that’s how we imagine it happening.

Since that fateful day Snapchat, the choice messaging app of millennials, has tacked another $15 billion onto its valuation, proving that the decision to turn down Facebook’s offer was justified. However, recent reports show that Snapchat is actually losing money and upsetting its core demographic, millennials, in the process. So what is Snapchat, why is it worth so much, where is it going, and most importantly – as marketers, how can we make money using it? That’s what #GCAiPlanet set out to uncover.

Snapchat lets users share self-deleting photos and videos with friends. It’s addicting. But it was the “Stories” feature, allowing users to post photos and videos for 24 hours, that propelled Snapchat into the limelight in 2013. “Stories,” a favorite among millennials, took Snapchat from a simple messaging app to full-blown social media platform with enormous potential for monetization.

This must have been clear to Facebook back in 2013. Two years later, Snapchat is the go-to social app for millennials (people from 18 to 33 years old). But the company is finally trying to capitalize on its potential to make money, and to the dismay of most of these users, the once simple app is changing.

#GCAiPlanet wanted a firsthand opinion of these changes from a member of Snapchat’s core demographic, so of course we consulted our resident millennial Quinn Fiona Garvey. Quinn has helped us navigate the fickle notions of her demographic before.

“It seems as though Snapchat has been on the outs ever since their most recent update,” said Quinn. That update removed another favorite feature among millennials – “Best Friends.” The “Best Friends” feature allowed users to see who other users were Snapping the most. Snapchat decided to remove that feature in order to protect the privacy of “a few higher-profile friends” as CEO Evan Spiegel put it. But the reaction was almost entirely negative, especially among millennials.

Perhaps the biggest change, though, has been the introduction of “Discover,” a feature allowing select media sources, such as ESPN, CNN and Mashable, to stream their content into the feeds of users. This feature, while lucrative for Snapchat, isn’t resonating with the app’s core demographic.

“We started getting updates from different channels, like Comedy Central and People magazine. Users aren’t interested in using Snapchat as a news source,” Quinn declared.

The recent changes haven’t been without positives. Quinn noted one new feature, in particular, that millennials are taking a liking to – Geofilters. This feature uses the location services of mobile devices to determine where a user is in the world and then provides that user with special overlay filters for their photos and videos, showing off their current location. These are only available in some locations and change depending on events in an area or time of year.

With all of that being said, does Snapchat have a role in the future of digital marketing? The GCAi Social Media Team says “yes.” Here’s why:

Social Media Marketing Analyst James Garvey thinks Snapchat is here to stay.

“While the app is making changes that aren’t getting unanimously positive responses, it isn’t losing a whole lot of users. People will always seek out the quickest and easiest way to communicate with friends, and right now that is Snapchat,” said James.

“From a digital marketing perspective, Snapchat has a bright future as well. As the platform continues to refine and segment its users using location services, it will become easier for brands and advertisers to target their audiences with content,” James added.

Digital Marketing Assistant David Bohl agrees that Snapchat is going to stick around, and thinks the key to digital marketing success for brands lies in the classic “Stories” feature.

“Many brands – McDonald’s and Amazon are a few notable ones – are already using Snapchat as a digital marketing tool. Users can add these brands to their friends list and they will get updates in their list of ‘Stories’ the same way they would from a friend,” said David. Learn more from the video here.

“The key is captivating content. Brands are competing for a user’s attention, which means they’ll need to be quick and creative in order to be effective on this platform,” David noted.

The GCAi Social Media Team predicts that, much like Instagram is doing now, advertisers and brands on Snapchat will soon be able to pay to push their messages into the feeds of users depending on their locations. It will be interesting to see if millennials jump ship as Snapchat continues its transition from a disappearing messaging app into a money-making social media platform.

Like all accomplished chefs, GCAi rarely reveals the recipe for digital marketing success. Every year however, we make an exception for MassChallenge startups and recently we helped over 30 of them learn to cook up digital marketing results.

GCAi presented to a group of MassChallenge startups

Our Digital Marketing Team shipped up to Boston on July 13 for a day at MassChallenge. After presenting our Digital Marketing boot camp, we met with individual startups from all over the world and offered more personalized advice. Our recipe of SEO PR, Social Media Marketing, and Online Advertising proved to be of great interest by gathering the biggest post-boot camp crowd.

Our day ended on an interesting and tasty note as we were able to have dinner with Tim Cigelske, Social Media Director for Marquette University, who was in town to present on analytics at a higher education social media conference. James Garvey presented on Social Media Marketing at that same conference two days later.

#GCAiPlanet asked each of the GCAi Digital Marketing team what the key takeaways were from the day at MassChallenge. Here is what they offered:

“Most of the startups we consult with really want to attract public attention to their venture,” notes John Garvey, President of GCAi and a judge and Mentor for MassChallenge. “Yet, our feeling is that they are generally not ready. Although they can readily speak to their eureka moment – the why and then when of their venture’s inception – they do not have enough traction to show its value to a specific set of customers.” John noted that explaining how your venture  will address a specific audience’s pain is important but, from a PR perspective, you need members of that same audience to tell your story – the story of how your solution addressed their pain points. “Effective PR is about storytelling and trying to attract attention based on the premise of a good idea, how clever I am is just not effective. Customers telling stories about value is.”

A question that arose frequently during their one-on-one meetings with the startups was, how much should I budget for advertising/promotion? “Of course this is a question all businesses ask but it is vitally important for a company that is still in its infancy and has limited accessible funds,” explains James Garvey. “Regardless of the financial status of an organization, determining a budget generally comes down to three considerations: who is your audience, what goal are you trying to achieve, and what platforms do you plan on utilizing.”

Mary suggested that startups need to fine-tune their targeting – addressing who their exact customers are and defining them by age, location, and interests if possible. “My recommendation was to start small by setting up an initial trial campaign. Analysis of those results would allow them to optimize their future campaigns by knowing who they should target, which platforms drive the best results and what spending level delivers the best return on investment.”

Unquestionably, the Social Media Marketing entrée was the one that most of the startups wanted to taste and James Garvey was their Gordon Ramsey. “I came prepared to launch in to Facebook promotion and talk about where Snapchat advertising was going, but was stopped in my tracks at Twitter,” explains James. “Many of the startups had ventured into Twitter by starting a profile, but had no idea how to navigate from there.” James explained how to stir up an audience on Twitter and then to spice things up with targeted promotion.

“We believe that Twitter can offer startups a lot of value when it comes to making critical connections and building a very targeted audience. But, you have to build a strategy that is unique to that platform – each platform in fact. One size does not fit all.” James suggests that startups begin by considering Twitter a platform as an influencer marketing tool. “The people you need to talk to are there and you can find them pretty easily. Yet, finding them will not lead to success. Startups need to be tweeting every day, starting conversations, and engaging with their audience before diving into promoting tweets and Twitter Web Cards.”

For Darcy Fortune, the mind-blowing diversity of the MassChallenge startups was the most amazing part of the day. “We answered questions from app builders, food startups, social mission ventures and an award winning wearable technology company that is making a device for the visually impaired. At times it felt like a digital marketing shark tank – we were the contestants and the startups were the panelists. The questions came rapidly, but it was really exciting to apply our techniques and experience to the variety of challenges that they presented.”

A sample of the ventures that GCAi worked with includes Collectible, Gosavana, Irahal, Six Foods, and Sunu.

Christina Polaski – Content and Social Media Manager at Carbonite

The GCAi Digital Marketing team spoke with Christina Polaski, Content and Social Media Manager at Carbonite. After years working with social media, Polaski has noticed a fundamental shift in the way things are done. Whereas traditional PR relies on the media to tell a company’s story, the rise of social media has shifted power into the hands of consumers. More than ever, everyday consumers are the ones telling the story for companies and brands – whether as advocates or critics. Influencer relations takes that concept to the next level.

Polaski defines influencer relations as getting highly connected and trustworthy people (influencers) to advocate on behalf of your company or brand to their networks. Promoting yourself only goes so far; as the digital landscape becomes saturated with marketing messages, people are becoming increasingly skeptical. You can say whatever you want about your own company, but your audience is ultimately going to take it with a grain of salt. Influencers attribute a trusting voice to your message as they push it out to their respective networks.

Influencers, by nature, have large networks. By getting such people to tell your story for you, you are exposing your company’s message to a network of consumers that was otherwise inaccessible.

The benefits of influencer relations are clear, but finding and establishing relationships with influencers in your industry may be more difficult than it seems. Christina Polaski outlined the following six steps that companies should follow in order to develop productive relationships with influencers:

1. Find influencers that fit.

A company must look at its objectives and determine the key markets it hopes to reach, and then make a list of potential influencers who fit those criteria. Look for people whose names are everywhere in your industry. Look at people with large followings on social media, bloggers, website administrators, authors and even community leaders – influencers are more common than you’d think.

2. Monitor those influencers on social media.

Do your research. You’ll need to know how often these influencers post on social media, blogs or websites, as well as the kind of content they post. This will further determine whether or not an influencer is someone you can see yourself doing business with.

3. Interact with the influencer.

Begin by retweeting and sharing the content the influencer posts, but be sincere and detailed in what you got out of that content. Don’t be dramatic or exaggerate. A good way to do this is simply by extracting a quote from the influencer and sharing it with your network. Giving the influencer credit for his or her expertise will encourage him or her to share your post and even message you back. That should get the ball rolling.

4. Send content to the influencers – show your value.

Influencer relations is very much a symbiosis between you and the influencers. You will benefit from their influence and reach, and in return they’ll expect to benefit in some way. Send them content or ideas to use. This will not only encourage a two-way communication, but will also establish you as a resource for them.

5. Create a clear plan.

Make it very clear what you’re hoping to get out of a relationship with the influencer and what you can give to him or her. Will you seek paid or unpaid services from this influencer? The difference is pivotal. Polaski suggests starting with unpaid services and measuring the success of those services before moving on to paid.

Unpaid influencer relations aims to generate brand awareness. This can be done by having influencers retweet your social content or mention your brand name in their own content, or submitting content to their website. These services are usually much less formal than paid services and stem primarily from a symbiotic relationship with the influencer – so pay them without actually paying them. A good way to do this is by sharing unique content which your audience and their audience have not yet seen.

Polaski offered some questions to consider before seeking out paid services from an influencer. Those questions include: how many interactions per week are you getting with this person? Did your audience grow as a result of the activities? What about your following? Did the content drive clicks to your website? All of these questions will help you understand if moving to paid services is worth it.

Paid influencer relations must generate leads and result in some sort of monetary payoff; otherwise, it’s a waste of an investment. Paid services could include the influencers pushing advertisements for your brand on their page or posting your content directly on their website, blog or social media sites. The possibilities are endless.

6. Communicate the plan directly.

Engage in direct conversation. Hopefully by this point you’ve established a relationship with the influencer and communicate regularly. Email or call the influencer to share the plan you’ve drafted. Again, be very clear about what you want. Have some ideas of how you can benefit the influencer in return, especially when seeking unpaid services.

Once you’ve followed these six steps, you’ll be well on your way to enjoying the many benefits of influencer relations. Getting started now is important – Christina Polaski predicts that one day it will be key influencers, rather than the media or consumers, who will be in control of the stories of companies.

The GCAi Digital Marketing Team recently attended the PRSA Boston Social Media Summit at Bentley University.

We regard this conference as one of the best – if not the best – conference we have ever attended. Every year, we walk away with great ideas and connections, and really have an all-around blast. To paraphrase Simon Sinek, it’s such an awesome experience to be with and talk to people who believe what we believe! Here are some of our takeaways.

GCAi has always believed that “good content tops everything,” so we couldn’t have agreed more when Christy Berkery (@berkeryc), Social Media Manager for the New England Patriots, said those exact words. Berkery went on to explain that she produces various types of content through three different means: identifying, seeking, and creating. Examples include sharing user-generated content such as Pats fan art, posting a photo of a player being signed to the team, and developing contests for fans to win tickets to the home opener. She also recommended always posting natively to each platform and allowing users to stay within their platform of choice whenever possible. When asked when the best time to post is and what type of content performs best, Berkery stated that every organization needs to know its audience by reviewing analytics.

“Sharing great user-generated content is just as valuable as creating your own,” said Berkery. For example, she said the most popular post across multiple platforms for this past March was a fan’s Save the Date wedding invitation. It displayed an emotionless picture of Bill Belichick with the simple words “Let’s Party”. Repacking user-generated content like this opens the door for more creativity from your audience and can increase engagement. It even drives uses for other social media platforms where content creation can be challenging. An example of this is the Pats’ Pinterest page. It is now a top spot for football themed wedding ideas, tattoos, game day recipes, and even baby portraits – all generated by fans. It’s time we stop guessing what our audiences want to see and actually let them show us.

Another modern, innovative marketing medium was highlighted by Jess Ann Kirby’s panel discussion on the emerging trend of “Influencer Marketing.” As social media continues to amplify the voice of the consumer over that of brands, peer-to-peer recommendations are expected to play an increased role in purchasing decisions. Jess discussed how brands wishing to reach niche audiences with their message would be better to do so through strategic partnerships with influencers or through established experts in the niche market that they seek to reach.

Jess (@jessannkirby) has built a following for her Rhode Island life and style blog, Prosecco & Plaid, and maintains a following of over 22,000 users on Instagram alone. Discussing the importance of discovering a brand’s key message and sticking to it, Jess has been successful in deploying tailored branded messages to her audience while keeping in step with the laidback coastal theme of her blog that her audience has come to love.

In terms of marketing innovation, there has never been a larger gap in history between those that make the decisions about media and marketing and those who actually do the work. Specifically, C-level decision makers, who often have input into or approval of digital media spending and strategy very often are not users of digital channels. The question then becomes one of audience engagement yet again. This time, however, it is how to engage your boss when he or she thinks Snapchat is a pithy conversational style.

Panelists from the healthcare industry, Ryan McBride of Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (@rymcbr); Toni-Lynn Hanson, Director of Interactive Communications for Lahey Health (@LaheyHealth); and Melanie Graham, Digital Content/Social Media Producer for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (@MelanieDFCI), addressed this question in depth. First, they suggested that a pragmatic start would be emphasizing the necessity to have a presence wherever the target audience is. Analytics, of course, are a must in pitching C-level decision makers – and digital marketing can, of course, provide a wealth of analytics. Audiences, influencers, even competition all are measureable in digital space and social media.

Healthcare brands tend to generate critical information and compelling stories with ease – in fact most brands have information at the ready that would be useful for consumers. Traditional methods of dissemination, however, have the trust of C-level decision makers. You can see a print ad and hold the brochure in your hand. That is not the case with targeted digital communications – if you do not fit the target audience, then you will not see the communication. Digital marketers looking for increased C-level engagement and investment must therefore prove their case with data demonstrating not only what is currently happening but also what increased investment will bring – especially as it relates to sales and competition!

And like Ginzu knives, there was so much more, but we can’t get to it all in this post! It was a blast to meet up with our PR friends, tweet at other attendees and presenters for more information, and the chocolate chip cookies were pretty good too. Major takeaways included drive engagement with user-generated content, C-level decisions with data, and influencer relations through targeting and exchanging valuable information. Needless to say, we will be tweeting from the Mass Pike next year as we make our way to the Summit.